Perhaps turn it on and watch (to see if you can observe circulation below the rack). If it's not as strong as circulation above the roast, I'd just raise the rack on some short custard cups or other short small prep bowls, and re-check for improvement. I can't tell for sure, but it appears that the output slot is just at the level of the roast, which might interfere with the normal circulation.

Custard cups! Brilliant!

You mentioned circulation in general. The water moves so slowly that it is hard for me to perceive circulation. I can see gentle movement on the surface of the water, but rarely can I detect it elsewhere. The output slots were lined up so that they were aimed to either side of the roast and the part closest to the roast, which wasn’t touching the roast, was a solid part of the circulator sleeve. Nevertheless, custard cups seems to be a better set up!

Seems fine as is. Any concerns, and probably not necessary, would be to flip it every 6-8 hours. When i do multiple packages of pork loins, --a few for the freezer and one for the nights meal, i use a rack that fits them up-right. Similar to 'hanging'. Not at all necessary but i often move them around once twice. Just takes a minute.

Just a piece of mind for me anywho.

A big cooler long cook i would do the same. Even then it is not necessary.

Sleevendog, moving things around isn’t easy with this set-up. Although I like it, the lid is a bit troublesome. But I like having the lid so I don’t have to worry about evaporation.

I think I overthink these things some times, make that ”often.”

Then there was the year I ordered 18 pounds of bison chuck and they gave me a whole shoulder. I just thought they wrapped the pieces together... I whomped it into four pieces which would fit in the bags and put them in a camping cooler with the circulator for three days. Every so often, I added water and shifted them around, but I know the circulation wasn't ideal. It's chuck. Not steak. It doesn't care. Even at only 30 hrs. it’ll be cooked, and only 4 pounds should be tender.

I once sous vide-ed a two pound chunk of meat, sirloin, I think, in too small a vessel where it sank and laid on the bottom. It was noticeably more done on top, but after browning, giving a little extra to the less done side, it didn't look bad. Everybody enjoyed it. I know the difference between polite murmurs and enjoyment!

The cups are brilliant. Stop worrying.

Plllog, Wow! An 18 pound bison shoulder is a surprise I would not want!

I generally use a small Igloo cooler if I’m only doing a couple of steaks. I had a larger Igloo cooler that was just the right size, not too big, not too small. And then I lost it. I lost 2 coolers in the span of just a few months. I began to worry that I was morphing into a drunk frat boy. Then the coolers returned. I had used them to carry food to sick friends and forgotten about it.

While the larger of the two coolers was AWOL, I looked at buying another just like it. But decided to treat myself to the fancy-schmancy Anova container. I was having cookbook club for lunch and sous vide-ing pork chops. I was showing off.

I like the Anova container because of the lid. It also has a rack that fits in the top that bags can hang from.

Worrying is my hobby! 😁

You have nothing to worry about.

All sous vide machines are designed to have circulating hot water blasting from the very bottom, besides, you have your steak on a metal rack, which helps to even out temperature.

dcarch

It would be fine. Not all sous vide cookers circulate the water. I have both kinds.

This morning’s report: The roast has been cooking for ~23 hours. I’m going to continue cooking it until mid-afternoon. I’m pleased with the Anova container. With the close fitting lid, water evaporation has been minimal. Even so, I added 4 cups of water before I went to bed last night.

I think I’ll probably do the sear on the grill due to the size of the roast. My largest cast iron skillet is only 10.75” in diameter. I’ve thought about buying a Searzall, but I don’t think I’d use it often enough to make it worth it.

Bbstx,

I want to know all about this and how it tastes and the texture. I haven’t had time to play w my sous vide. Did you season or marinate? I’’d like to buy an inexpensive cut of beef and have it taste the the most wonderful prime rib. Any chance? ;)

Here it is…or a part of it anyway. It is quite tender, not filet tender but it can be cut fairly easily with a table knife. The cleaner cuts were done with a sharp kitchen knife.

This is a cow bought by DD and DSIL (50%), Sister and DBIL (25%) and a good friend (25%). It was pasture raised until the last month or two when it was given corn. I would say this chuck roast cooked sous vide for 30 hours at 135.5 degrees is at least as tender as a porterhouse or a T-bone, maybe even a ribeye. It has a good chew but is not chewy.

I have cut it into slices for sandwiches later in the week. Where I couldn’t get a good slice, I chunked it up for vegetable beef soup. And I saved a couple of good size chunks to eat like roast. I had to clean off a fair amount of fat and a couple of bones (saved the bones to go into the soup).

I am not pleased with the wire rack I had in the water bath. It rusted! I thought I had a stainless steel rack. Guess not.

@petalique, I’m not a prime rib fan. I generally find it too chewy. This roast cooked sous vide is more tender than prime rib in my opinion. I did not marinate it. All I did was put a lot of Jane’s Crazy Salt on it, which was adequate, but it could have been better seasoned. I use a FoodSaver vacuum sealer so no wet seasonings for me. I’ve tried the water displacement method, but I prefer vacuum sealing.

Thanks, plllog.I was being cheeky. Silk purse from sow’s ear.

bbstx, your chuck looks good. There are so many ways to use this, as you’ve described. It’ very lean, so that would be healthier for most of us. Wow, 30 hours of cooking! I imagine it is lean because it was largely grass fed?

I like most cuts of meat,and beef and don’t mindif it has a bit of chew. I have to limit my saturated fat intake, so this lean grass-fed cut, trimmed would be a good option.

We don’t hvae prime rib often, maybe once every two years. We used to get prime cut fom a local butcher, but the family decided to leave the business. They had the best prime rib. A year of two ago, we tried one from a decent grocery market. It was okay, but nothing like the ones from that family.

One thing I used to do was to cook large chuck roasts in a totally different direction. I’d remove the wrapper and put on a clean plate in a very cold refridgerator with a fan. After about 2-3 days I would slice some off and pan fry it like a piece of steak. Don’t try this at home, but I could keep it good for close to a week. Doing that drove off a lot of the moisture/water.

Usually, we eat meat protein mixed with vegetables, as in a stir fry or meatballs in spaghetti sauce.

Yeah, Petalique, but I wasn't. That 18 lbs. of bison chuck was amazing. Sous vide for days, then rested for a few house, brushed with good barbecue sauce and reheated/finished under the broiler. Like Bbstx, I'm not fond of prime rib. The chuck was luscious. And fork tender. Held together just enough to slice.

Bbstx, that looks great! And very sous vide style from edge to edge. :)

Re the rack, there's no such thing as rust free steel, just a lot less likely to rust. 30 hrs. is a long time to be in water, for steel. You could do a DIY save by coating it with handle goop.